Chapter 1609: Chapter 1609
“Right after you left, Nolan was hit by a relentless series of incidents. You've probably heard about the ancient titan, the ghoul invasion, the inverted city, and the tsunami—we were absolutely swamped back then. But things have been quiet since. For the past two weeks, our main focus has been hunting down the members of the Gear Artisans' Association. I'm not sure if Papa Oliver mentioned it, but we've discovered they're trying to excavate a terrifying sealed entity from deep beneath Nolan.”
Miss Bevanna explained, pressing a hand to her forehead. She looked thoroughly drained.
The ancient titan, the ghoul invasion, the inverted city, and the tsunami—all four events were connected to Jenkins. Along with the shadow invasion in Ruen, these five incidents had allowed him to collect the five gems for the "Misfortune Poem" and acquire the [Hero] ability. Since then, his journey had taken him from Ruen to Bel Diran, where he had become entangled in yet another series of major events. He hadn't had time to return to Nolan, which was probably why the city had enjoyed half a month of relative peace.
“So, have we found them?”
“It's incredibly difficult. The ancient mining tunnels beneath Nolan are a sprawling labyrinth. Even with the reinforcements recently sent from Bel Diran and the cooperation of the other churches, it's a monumental task. But we will find them.”
Miss Bevanna declared with confidence, adding that if Jenkins wanted to learn more, he could come back and see her tomorrow. After all, the day's priority was welcoming the delegation from Bel Diran.
The city lamps were already being lit by the time Jenkins left the church. He had intended to visit his divination teacher, Miss Audrey, that evening, but with other plans in mind, he decided to postpone it until the next day. First, he went home to retrieve a flower. Then, using an ordinary rose seed, he magically coaxed a white rose into bloom. After changing his clothes, he headed eagerly toward the city square.
He didn't have to wait long before a carriage pulled up. Hathaway and Briny had arrived.
He handed the flower girl's gift to Hathaway and gave the white rose to Briny. Jenkins had cultivated the white rose himself; he hadn't seen any in this world, but thankfully, the basic laws of genetics still seemed to work.
Both young women smiled as they spoke; Jenkins rarely gave them flowers. Hathaway brought the bloom to her nose and noticed its scent was slightly off. Looking up, she saw Jenkins give her a subtle wink and instantly realized this was a special gift meant just for her.
Despite being weary from their travels, the two young women were just as thrilled to be back in Nolan as Jenkins was. The trio had long-standing plans to attend the theater that evening. Getting tickets was hardly a concern, of course, since Jenkins owned a share of the Silver Jasmine Opera Troupe.
Returning to Nolan hardly meant a respite for Jenkins. On the contrary, with so many acquaintances from across the world flooding into the city, his schedule was packed.
On the night he arrived in Nolan, he took Hathaway and Briny to a theater in the suburbs. The next morning, he was up early, using a spiritual lodestone to project himself to Alexia and Dolores, giving each of them a white flower before making a hasty departure. Then, he jogged over to Pops Antique Shop, where he joined Papa Oliver to move a shipment of antiques from the warehouse near the train station—a collection that had arrived three days before everyone else.
The work kept them busy until noon, after which Jenkins was summoned by the church to attend a welcoming ceremony for the delegation from the Bel Diran diocese. Once the ceremony concluded, he was hoping for a short break, but he had barely set foot back in Pops Antique Shop when a messenger arrived. Jenkins was informed that a banquet would be held that evening to welcome the royal family to Nolan, and his presence was required.
Since Hathaway and Briny had just returned to Nolan and had their own matters to attend to, Jenkins couldn't ask either of them to accompany him. After letting them both know, he invited Miss Windsor to be his companion for the evening's banquet.
The event was as tedious as every other banquet he had ever attended. Aside from the surprisingly delicious fruit juice, Jenkins found it to have no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
His father was absent, but his brothers were in attendance, accompanying Queen Isabella as members of the royal family. The only small incident occurred when John accidentally bumped into a young man Jenkins didn't recognize. The stranger looked ready to make a scene, but then he noticed Miss Windsor standing with Jenkins. His mouth hung open for a second before he snapped it shut and quickly walked away without a word.
“That's Queen Isabella's great-nephew.”
The relation was so distant Jenkins couldn't quite work out if they were related.
“So he's also in the line of succession?”
Miss Windsor conceded, swirling the red wine in her glass:
“You should be careful. Not all of these people who've followed the court to Nolan are content to just wait around. It's possible someone will get a rush of blood to the head and do something foolish.”
“They wouldn't dare.”
Jenkins voiced his doubt.
“Don't assume that everyone is seasoned against temptation or has capable advisors to guide them. Immature youths are the most susceptible to being goaded by others, or to doing something astonishing on a moment's impulse.”
Miss Windsor said, and Jenkins nodded in understanding.
After the banquet, Jenkins didn't head straight home. Instead, carrying his drowsy cat, he made his way to the residence of his divination teacher, Miss Audrey. It was deep into the night, but Miss Audrey had foreseen his visit and was waiting up for him.
After all, since he hadn't shown up the previous day, she knew he was bound to come today.
“It's been a while, Miss Audrey.”
Their last meeting had been a late-night intrusion concerning the events in Black Town.
“It has been a while. You look well, so I trust your journey was a success. I also hope you haven't neglected our lessons these past two months. Now that you're back in Nolan, we can think about resuming your studies. However, I suspect you didn't come all this way tonight just to give me a progress report, did you?”
She gestured for Jenkins to sit, then called for a maid to bring them both tea.
“Actually, I came to ask about something.”
Miss Audrey asked, and knew from Jenkins's expression that she had guessed correctly.
“My teacher, Brolignans, mentioned them in a letter about a month ago. What have you learned about them so far?” Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs novel⁂fire.net
Miss Audrey inquired.
“I know there are four of them, and that whoever gathers all four King Souls can become the king of humanity. They say it's an ability that ancient humans cultivated over generations through myth and legend. And because there can only be one human king, the ability itself is unique.”
Jenkins laid out everything he knew. He already had his suspicions about who held the four King Souls, but since integrating the special lens into his monocle, he had refrained from actively searching for anyone besides Miss Windsor and Dolores. He wanted to understand the complete situation before making a move.